Contactless Smart Cards, RFID, Payment, Transit and Security

Fujitsu to launch 1 million smart cards in London

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

Fujitsu has announced plans to produce and distribute over 1 million new contactless smart cards in London, according to squidcard.com.

Fujitsu’s new Freedom Passes will combine Oyster and ITSO smart card technology, and will also feature a photograph of the user for identification.


Freedom users over the age of 60 will be able to use the cards for free rides on buses, trains, the Underground and the Docklands Light Railway in London, in addition to local bus routes around England.

The new cards will also be valid for five years, rather than the current two year period.

Read more here[end] 

The Smart Card Alliance Transportation Council has published a white paper examining how the transit industry can best make use of NFC technology.

“One of the major challenges facing transit agencies today is how to capitalize on the ever-growing popularity of mobile phones with a solid mobile strategy,” said Transportation Council Chairman Craig Roberts. “This white paper builds on the knowledge base developed in earlier white papers to foster a greater understanding of NFC technology, explain its role in the transit industry, and shed light on key issues facing the transit industry in developing a mobile strategy.”

read more »

UK mobile operator O2 is delaying the launch of its “O2 Wallet” mobile contactless payments, loyalty and transit app due to concerns that it is “not yet offering an adequate customer experience,” reports MarketingWeek.

read more »

Isis, the mobile commerce joint venture between AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon, is preparing to launch a massive NFC payments pilot in Salt Lake City this summer, reports the Salt Lake Tribune.

read more »

India transport operator Ahmedabad Janmarg Ltd. has launched a smart transit card for commuters traveling on the region’s bus system, according to ISO&Agent.

The agency began a six-month trial and August 2010 followed by a soft and silent launch in January 2012. The card is available now for a nonrefundable fee of 25 rupees ($.50 US cents) and allows commuters to travel for up to 100 minutes on one bus, for the minimum fare.

read more »

Turkcell, Turkey’s largest mobile operator, has announced the launch of a SIM-based NFC road toll payment application on the Turkcell T11 smart phone.

Developed in collaboration with Bank Asya, the app allows users to migrate their plastic KGS toll payment cards onto their T11 smart phone to pay for fares when crossing bridges and freeway turnpikes.

read more »

The Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC), the state run bus service in Maharashtra, India, has adopted a smart card ticketing system to replace its existing paper passes for transit buses.

read more »

Subscribe to the Contactless News Library
Gain access to the largest collection of Auto-ID analysis on the Internet.